Border patrol agents in Arizona this week were overwhelmed after the largest caravan of migrants ever to cross into the United States tunneled beneath the border wall near San Luis, Arizona. According to ABC News, the migrants immediately turned themselves into Customs and Border Protection.
“Migrants can be seen marching toward Border Patrol agents by the hundreds,” reports ABC News. “Smugglers dug a series of seven holes, only a few feet long beneath the steel border fence, with hundreds going beneath the wall and a smaller number clambering over it.”
The migrant group included 376 people, 179 of which were reportedly children, 30 of whom were unaccompanied minors. While the number of illegal crossings has dropped significantly since its peak in 2001, Customs and Border Protection says the demographics of today’s migrants have noticeably changed due to the overwhelming number of parents crossing with children.
“Parents with children now comprise over 80 percent of the total apprehensions of those crossing the 2,000-mile long border with Mexico,” reports ABC News. “The vast majority of them, like the group near Yuma Monday, surrender immediately or seek out Border Patrol agents in order to begin the asylum process.” – READ MORE